“Professor Watson writes
Hi friends,
I am always being asked to grade Obama’s presidency. In place of offering him a grade, I put together a list of his accomplishments thus far. I think you would agree that it is very impressive. His first six months have been even more active than FDRs or LBJs the two standards for such assessments. Yet, there is little media attention given to much of what he has done. Of late, the media is focusing almost exclusively on Obama’s critics, without holding them responsible for the uncivil, unconstructive tone of their disagreements or without holding the previous administration responsible for getting us in such a deep hole. The misinformation and venom that now passes for political reporting and civic debate is beyond description.
As such, there is a need to set the record straight. What most impresses me is the fact that Obama has accomplished so much not from a heavy-handed or top-down approach but from a style that has institutionalized efforts to reach across the aisle, encourage vigorous debate, and utilize town halls and panels of experts in the policy-making process. Beyond the accomplishments, the process is good for democracy and our democratic processes have been battered and bruised in recent years.
Let me know if I missed anything in the list (surely I did).
Robert
1. Ordered all federal agencies to undertake a study and make recommendations for ways to cut spending. (The recommendations have led to what?)
2. Ordered a review of all federal operations to identify and cut wasteful spending and practices (Again what have they cut?)
3. Instituted enforcement for equal pay for women (How many women occupy top spots in the admin, for that matter how diverse is Obama’s cabinet compared to GW’s?) (Equal pay enforcement has got what exactly? the bill was already on the books prior to Obama, and just like Obama’s normal, taking credit for something not done.)
4. Beginning the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq (Would have been started under WHOEVER was POTUS at the time, because of the success of GWB’s surge that Obama and Biden both opposed)
5. Families of fallen soldiers have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB (Not sure that this is true, Under the previous admin some had to cover costs but were immediately repaid. either way its a GOOD THING)
6. Ended media blackout on war casualties; reporting full information (And how many bodies have been seen on the MSM coming home since Obama took over? 1 I think, and is that because no more soldiers died? no it’s because the families control the use of media at their arrival)
7. Ended media blackout on covering the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB; the media is now permitted to do so pending adherence to respectful rules and approval of fallen soldier’s family (See #5, same applies, no media coverage since the wars have started for the most part, but if GW was still in office we would be swamped with coverage in the media)
8. The White House and federal government are respecting the Freedom of Information Act (Uh Yeah, exactly what differences have you seen?)
9. Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible, (The key words are “As much as possible” and I guess the health care debate, and cap and tax were not possible) LMAO
10. Limits on lobbyist’s access to the White House ( Yeah, limits which mean unless you are FOR socialism, UNIONS and Black Causes, you can not go)
11. Limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration (see above)
12. Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date (Ok, then he sent 20k more troops to fight since he pretty much forgot about it for the st 6 months of his agenda pushing)
13. Phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdated weapons systems, which weren’t even used or needed in Iraq/Afghanistan (The future will dictate if this was wise, Clinton made it illegal for soldiers to carry firearms on base. We see how Ft Hood worked out)
14. Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research (Not good, but yeah he did do it, just like GWB stopped it in his first couple of days)
15. Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research (yep he did it, just like GWB undid it in his first couple of days)
16. New federal funding for science and research labs (Key word is FEDERAL funding, which continues to raise our debt, see wasteful spending that he was supposed to curtail)
17. States are permitted to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards (Ok, that was what, a suggestion? more Globull warming stuff)
18. Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect (After years of neglect? he instituted this as part of the “Stimulus package” which saved or created some jobs.. LOL)
19. Funds for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools (Yeah, more federal spending)
20. New funds for school construction (Funding)
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